All posts by Dameon Cox

Born in Atlanta Georgia, Mr. Cox lived there until he joined the United States Air Force and served in Texas, France and Germany. Writing is his fourth career. He started in large mainframe computers, and then moved on to become a real estate broker. He returned to college to obtain a nursing degree and practiced as a Registered Nurse and also began writing his first novel, which he stated became his most rewarding work. He lives in Phoenix, Arizona with a large Great Dane that thinks he’s a lap dog!

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Copyright Law Basics

March 17, 2015 Dameon Cox Leave a comment

Copyright protection exists from the moment a work is created in a fixed, tangible form of expression. The copyright immediately becomes the author's property who created the work. Only the author, or those he/she gives rights to, can claim copyright. In works made for hire, the employer—not the writer—is the author.

Ownership in Copyright Law Basics of a book, does not give copyrights.

Duration: If you right it now, you own it until seventy years after your death. Pseudonymous works (unless the author's identity is in the Copyright Office), the copyright is 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter. Works prior to 1978 are different. See an attorney.

A copyright notice has three parts:

The symbol © (the letter C in a circle), the word "Copyright" or the abbreviation "Copr."
The year when the work was first created.
The name of the owner of the copyright.

"International" Copyright

"International" copyright that automatically protects a work throughout the world does not exist. Nonetheless, the most widely-adopted copyright treaty, the Berne Convention, states that once a work is protected in one of the Convention member countries, it is protected by copyright in all of them. As of mid-2004, 156 countries, including the U.S., belong to the Berne Convention.

As always, if you have questions about Copyright Law Basics, see an attorney!

Summarized from web content by Dameon Cox

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Warfare for Writers -

February 23, 2015 Dameon Cox Leave a comment

This is the 6th installment of WARFARE FOR WRITERS - 6 Fog of War graciously permitted by Timons Esaias.

Warfare or Writers 6 deals with common mistakes writers make when writing about war, battles and et cetera.

The thing that is screwed up the most, is having warriors know too much, too accurately and too quickly. The truth of war is that nobody knows what's happening and half what they think is wrong. There are few truth commissions sorting through the facts while war is happening, so ignorance of what happens accumulates over time. One example: The American public didn't know what happened at Pearl Harbor for the entire war. We still aren't quite sure.

SO WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOUR WRITING?

Don't do that

Have the uncertainty of the situation get on your characters' nerves

Use it as a plot device. images

Tips for Writers

In the hospital

January 14, 2015 Dameon Cox Leave a comment

I now have nine screws attached to various metal pieces in my right ankle. I'll be posting again in a couple of weeks. In the hospital on the way to rehab. Dameon

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Tasty Things - 2 Kill You

January 5, 2015 Dameon Cox Leave a comment

Note: In this series, I've pulled information from various providers. These came from Wikipedia.

Tasty Things - 2 Kill You - I write fantasy and that gives me license to make up stuff. That's not always a good practice. It's best to have kernels of truth in even fantasy work the reader can identify with having seen or heard of in passing. Some of these poisons come from exotic parts of the world, but there is always a way to work them into your story, i.e., the nice little man at the corner apothecary. So, fantasy or non fantasy, see if some of these can flavor your story.

Cerbera odollam (commonly known as the suicide tree). The seeds contain cerberin, a potent toxin related to digoxin. The poison blocks the calcium ion channels in heart muscle, causing disruption of the heart beat. This is typically fatal and can result from ingesting a single seed. and its taste can be masked with strong spices, such as a curry. It is often used in homicide and suicide in India; Kerala's suicide rate is about three times the Indian average. Now, you know there are a lot of Indian spice shops around the world!

Consolida(commonly known as larkspur). Young plants and seeds are poisonous, causing nausea, muscle twitches, paralysis. Often fatal. Tea, anyone?

Digitalis purpurea(commonly known as foxglove). The leaves, seeds, and flowers are poisonous, containing cardiac or other steroid glycosides. These cause irregular heartbeat, general digestive upset, and confusion. Can be fatal. You might need lots of tea for this one!

Phytolacca(commonly known as pokeweed). Leaves, berries and roots contain phytolaccatoxin and phytolaccigenin. Toxin in young leaves is reduced with repeated boiling and draining. Ingestion of poisonous parts of the plant may cause severe stomach cramping, persistent diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting (sometimes bloody), slow and difficult breathing, weakness, spasms, hypertension, severe convulsions, and death. Not a pleasant way to go!

Ricinus communis (commonly known as castor oil plant or Palma Christi). The seeds contain ricin, an extremely toxic water-soluble protein. Also present are ricinine, an alkaloid, and an irritant oil. According to the 2007 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records, this plant is the most poisonous in the world. The lethal dose in adults is considered to be 4 to 8 seeds, but reports of actual poisoning are relatively rare. If ingested, symptoms may be delayed by up to 36 hours but commonly begin within 2–4 hours. These include a burning sensation in mouth and throat, abdominal pain, purging and bloody diarrhea. Within several days there is severe dehydration, a drop in blood pressure and a decrease in urine. Unless treated, death can be expected to occur within 3–5 days; if victims have not succumbed after this time, they often recover. Toxicity varies among animal species: 4 seeds will kill a rabbit, 5 a sheep, 6 an ox or horse, 7 a pig, and 11 a dog. Poisoning occurs when animals ingest broken seeds or break the seed by chewing; intact seeds may pass through the digestive tract without releasing the toxin. Ducks have shown substantial resistance to the seeds: it takes an average of 80 to kill them. Gee, mama, do I have to drink that; it's yucky!

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Cover Artist - 2

January 2, 2015 Dameon Cox Leave a comment

Cover Artist - 2 is Jeff Brown, a digital artist specializing in environment paintings. He is a full-time freelancer, originally from Saskatoon, Canada. He currently lives in Cuernavaca, Mexico. He has worked for many projects in the industry such as Monstrous, SettleForge, Fallen, Rhune, and Shattered.

Mr. Brown charges $200 for a quicker concept picture and $450 for a detailed cover. The pictures posted here are copyrighted by Mr. Brown. You can connect Mr. Brown through his website: www.jeffbrowngraphics.com

The first two pictures are concept pictures and the last two are detail covers.

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Belladonna, and other tasty treats! - Dameon Cox Author Blog

December 29, 2014 Dameon Cox 79 Comments

Belladonna, and other tasty treats!

Poisoning has been around for a long time. Socrates was forced to drink hemlock in the year 399 by his own hand. Of course, in today's world many toxins are around to do one in. I've listed some of the longtime favorites to whet your appetite. Over the years, I've found several incidents where an author used a poison not yet discovered. You can make up your own in fantasy or sci-fi, but I advise checking out your toxins if your setting is real world.

Belladonna is also know as Nightshade. Belladonna, or "pretty woman" in English is a flowering plant that can, over years, grow ten feet tall. The shiny black berries are the most poisonous, but the rest of the plant can kill you, too. It's found in Europe.

Another plant to reach ten feet is Poison Hemlock. It has pretty flowers and fleshy roots. It's not related to the Eastern Hemlock Tree grown in the United States. Paralysis of the lungs is usually the cause of death. The victim can't move, but is aware of what's happening around him until the very end. Not a happy way to go.

Arsenic inhibits the production of necessary enzymes and has been linked to cancer in small amounts. It was used in the middle ages, think the Borgias. The symptoms are similar to cholera.

Strychnine comes from Asia and Australia and wasn't discovered until 1818 by Pierre-Joseph Pelletier and Joseph Caventou.

Curare is slow and horrific. It comes from the Amazon (the forest, not the website). It's used in hunting and tribal warfare. Unless you're Indiana Jones, you probably won't need it.

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Warfare for Writers - 5

December 24, 2014 Dameon Cox 3 Comments

NOTE: As those who follow my blog know, I don't use it to self promote my novels. Nonetheless, like all authors, a little help is needed. If you enjoy my blog and find it useful, please follow and like me on the social media platforms you use. I'm on Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, GoodReads and Linkedin. Thanks for the help, Dameon

Warfare for Writers - 5 is another in the series graciously permitted by Timons Esaias for distribution by me from his lectures.

What is a "line" ?

In army terms, a line is a formation in which each soldier, or artillery piece, or horse or chariot is facing forward, and the other members of the unit are side-by-side. If a second line of soldiers/horses/guns is behind the first, this is called a double line or a two-man line. There can be triple lines, and so forth, but the nature of a line is that it is wider than it is deep. In the old days, when most military vessels were oared (galleys) and their major ship-to-ship weapon was the ram, a naval line was the same as an army line, vessels shoulder-to-shoulder, facing forward. We now call this formation line abreast. With the invention of the cannon, however, the business end of the ship was actually its sides, so the "battle line" got turned 90°, and ships moved nose to tail. So now a line on land is the opposite of a line at sea.

What is a "column" ??

The column is the "opposite" formation from a line, and can be created simply by having everyone in a line formation turn 90° to the right or left, in place. In the part-wrestling-match that is close combat, this formation is used to break through the enemy, or at least push them around, by piling up against them. If people in the front are killed, they can be replaced by folks immediately behind, without stopping to reorganize. A column is generally deeper than it is wide, though starting in a solid square was quite common. The column also applies more "peer pressure" on the troops in it to stay in formation. (It takes more discipline to stand steady in a line than it does in a column, because there are fewer folks behind you to make you stay.) Each line in a column or in a multiple-line formation is called a rank, and the rows of guys from front to back are called files. Since these formations are made up of the most common soldiers, this is where our expression "rank-and-file" (meaning the grunts who do the real work) comes from.

Which flank is which?

The "right" and "left" of a unit is judged as you would a person, as they face forward. When arrayed for battle one generally faces the enemy. Your right will be to your right, and opposite your right will be the enemy left.

Enemy Right Enemy Center Enemy Left

Your Left Your Center Your Right

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Warfare for Writers - 4

December 22, 2014 Dameon Cox 3 Comments

Warfare for Writers - 4 is the latest update from the Timons Esaias' workshop. These comments go from medieval to modern times.

You can see arrows and crossbow bolts flying through the air, likewise trebuchet loads. And you can figure out pretty much where they were fired from, as a result. Also, you can hear them. Likewise with musket balls and cannonballs and artillery shells. You can see them, and you can hear them, and because they are subsonic you can hear the shot before the projectile gets to you. If it's close enough you can also probably see the muzzle flash of the gun, not to mention the smoke, and tell where it came from.

This all changed with the modern rifle, though. Modern bullets travel quite a distance at supersonic speed, so you actually hear the sonic boom of the bullet before you hear the shot, if you hear the shot at all. Oh, and the bullet will hit you, or go past you, before you hear it. And you generally can't see the bullet, ever. Because the sonic boom is the main sound you hear, and the bullet is past you before you hear it, the sound cues (unless you're VERY used to this) tell you the opposite of the truth. You will think the bullet came from where it actually went, or 180-degrees from the correct solution. When people hear modern gunshots, they almost always start looking in the wrong direction.

The reason we can be pretty sure there were no shots from the "grassy knoll," is because so many untrained people heard shots coming from the grassy knoll.

So unless your character is very close to the weapon when it discharges, don't have them figure out where the shots are coming from by the sound.

Dameon Cox, Author

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Warfare for Writers -

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Belladonna, and other tasty treats!

Belladonna is also know as Nightshade. Belladonna, or "pretty woman" in English is a flowering plant that can, over years, grow ten feet tall. The shiny black berries are the most poisonous, but the rest of the plant can kill you, too. It's found in Europe.

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Get The Zenith’s Spy Free!